A proposed airport in the Thames estuary would be in the 'very worst spot' for the south-east's crowded airspace, according to the boss of Britain's air traffic control service. Richard Deakin, chief executive of the National Air Traffic Services (Nats), said there were 'serious challenges' in working more planes into an already busy flight path. He added that the architects who unveiled plans for the £50bn ($80bn) project last November had not even asked air traffic control about the feasibility of the airport. The scheme is expected to cost between £50billion and £70billion ($110bn). The airport would have four runways, with space to build two more.

The stinging attack on plans for the 'floating' airport from Britain's most senior air traffic chief will add to growing calls it to be scrapped. Deakin said that the Thames estuary airport - dubbed the 'Boris Island' after London Mayor Boris Johnson - would be built under flight paths for four of London's five airports. These include Heathrow, Gatwick, Stanstead, Luton and London City.'We're a little surprised that none of the architects thought it worthwhile to have a little chat,' Mr Deakin told the Guardian. The plans by architects Foster and Partners were revealed in January and would make the airport the biggest in Britain.

Mr Deakin said that the majority of flight paths criss-crossed the direct spot where the Estuary airport is planned. This would lead to more traffic jams in the air. Planes arriving and departing airports must follow strict flight paths. If the skies are congested the planes must circle before there is a slot in the sky. He added that in addition to the risk of planes being hit by birds in the wetands, there would also be competition for air space from Amsterdam's Schiphol airport. More flights would then be forced to circle overhead for longer.

Mr Deakin said that even though the Estuary airport was possible it would go against plans in the aviation industry to conserve fuel by shortening flight times. He called for a third runway to be built at Heathrow. 'The single biggest thing we could do to reduce CO2 in the UK is to build a third runway at Heathrow,' he said. 'Heathrow holding is not about airspace - it's about lack of tarmac. I'm very confident that (a third runway) would eliminate all the holding patterns in one go.'

The Coalition agreement signed between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats in 2010 banned any extra airports. However, there is growing pressure from BAA, the flight industry and from Tory ministers for Britain to increase its air capacity. David Cameron has even signalled his intention to increase the number of flights coming in and out of the UK either by expanding Heathrow or building anew airport. One of the most likely options is the 'Boris Island'. The Government aviation review is currently looking at the project after George Osborne announced in the Budget that Britain needed to ‘confront the lack of airport capacity’ in the South East of England.

The £50billion airport would be built on an artificial island made of landfill and would be capable of handling 150 million passengers annually - or 300,000 passengers a day - making it Britain’s main international hub.
Having initalliy ruled out a third runway at Heathrow after opposition from locals and environmental groups, the Government is ‘increasingly interested’ in the idea.

Mr Johnson has also praised separate designs by architect Lord Foster for a £50billion airport on a sparse strip of land on the Isle of Grain in Kent, which juts out into the estuary. Environmental campaigners have criticised the plans for the damage they could do to rare wildlife in the estuary, as well as adding to Britain's CO2 emissions. The Government has also signalled that plans for a controversial third runway at Heathrow are 'back on the table'.

The Chancellor has refused to rule out expanding Britain's biggest airport because he believes it is key to our 'hub status' and essential to Britain's economic future. Earlier this month a report suggested that the UK economy will suffer by up to £8.5billion per year over the next decade if Heathrow does not undergo significant expansion. A Department for Transport spokesman said: 'In the summer we will consult on an overarching sustainable framework for UK aviation and alongside this we will publish a call for evidence on maintaining effective UK hub airport connectivity. The coalition's position regarding Heathrow has not changed.'

A much maligned proposal for a 12 storey development in the heart of Poplar was approved at the second attempt by London Thames Gateway Development Corporation.

Objectors turned out in force at Stratford Town Hall at Thursday's meeting but the scheme was unanimously voted through.

At a previous hearing, plans for the 26 unit Virginia Quay construction - which nearby residents say takes up valuable open space and is counter to a previous agreement - was voted against by members of the LTGDC planning committee four to three, contrary to officers' advice.

Thursday night's meeting was originally to formulate a legal argument to scrap the proposal, until applicant Cube Developments made minor changes to the plans.

A 21-day consultation was then held in which Tower Hamlets Council voted unanimously for the second time not to support the plans.

However, members of the LTGDC - which is the planning body for the proposal as the scheme is over a certain height and faces the Thames - rejected the council's views and instead followed their officers' advice to pass through the new plans.

Blackwall and Cubit Town councillor Peter Golds, who spoke out against the proposal at Thursday's meeting, said of the decision: "It's very disappointing. There's 1,000 homes due to be affected by this and 800 signed the petition against it. You never see a political campaign like this get 80 per cent support."

Protestors were also angered by the fact the proposal was being decided on by the LTGDC, which is due to be scrapped later this year.

Objectors held up placards during the meeting urging members not to pass through the scheme.

Many also funded a report from a QC which supported their case.

Following the vote, Cliff Prior, one of the residents leading the campaign against the proposal, warned the decision could have consequences for other communities in east London.

He said: "What this decision says is anybody who lives on estate in this area could have another development placed in front of them whatever previous agreements had been made."

Defending the decision, chair of the LTGDC's planning board Cllr Conor McAuley said the applicant had met the committee's concerns in its revised plans and added this made it a "much better scheme".

"Converting all one bedroom units into two bedroom units brings the development into line with local council and London wide policies on size standards," he said in a statement released by LTGDC on Friday morning.

"Similar amendments have seen the provision of balcony space comply with existing guidance and other concerns relating to access, sunlight and over development have been addressed.

"The committee considered whether there were strong planning grounds for refusal and concluded correctly that there were not.

"To have decided in any other way would have resulted in the wilful squandering of public money in legal costs at appeal where defeat would be inevitable."

He added: "To the disappointment of the objectors to the scheme I have to tell them that our decision was informed solely by an assessment of the application against existing planning policy, including those developed by Tower Hamlets Council.

"The fact that council officers have made clear that they consider the scheme acceptable provides confirmation that our assessment of it against existing policy was consistent and correct."

A380 super-jumbos could be allowed to land at Heathrow for more than 20 hours a day under plans being considered by ministers.

Emirates Airline hopes to bypass restrictions on night flights by landing its A380 airbuses — the world’s largest passenger airliners — at steeper angles to protect homes from jet-engine noise. The airline wants permission to fly in and out until 1am every day, restarting flights after 4am.

Tough restrictions are in place on night flights, with only 16 allowed at the airport, the majority of which arrive and depart between 4.15am and 6am. Campaigners today warned that around 500,000 people who live near Heathrow are already affected by night flights and that steeper approaches would not help the problem.

However, Emirates believes that it could increase the number of daily flights from London to Dubai from five to seven using the new take-off and landing methods. If allowed, it could allow Heathrow — which is operating at nearly full capacity — to increase flight numbers despite continued opposition to a third runway.

Tim Clark, Emirates Airline’s president, told the Financial Times: “If you can demonstrate the noise profile is much quieter, why not look at that as a means of growing capacity at constrained hub airports?”

Emirates estimates that the steeper descents into the airport could reduce the impact from jet engine noise by between 15 and 20 per cent.

The planes would fly into Heathrow at a 5.5-degree angle, rather than the usual three degrees. Aircraft would also land a kilometre further along the runways, meaning that they would be further from homes near the airport.

John Stewart, of campaign group HACAN clearskies, said: “At night, there is no such thing as a quiet plane. A new landing approach will not mean fewer people being affected by noise.

“It seems that they are using the fact that the A380 is a bit quieter to try to get this through, but I don’t think they’ll get away with it. Night flights are so controversial. It’s almost impossible to see a minister authorising any more night flights.”

Last month, the Government said it would keep existing night flying restrictions at the airport until 2014 but would consult on the issue this year.

A Department for Transport spokesman said: “We will launch a first-stage consultation this year which will seek detailed evidence, and we welcome any contributions to this debate.”

Any change to the permitted 480,000 annual flights allowed at Heathrow would need a planning application to be submitted by airport owner BAA.

Both Boris Johnson and Ken Livingstone today said they would oppose moves to increase night flights.

Boris Johnson unveils plans to support just 58 new houses in Haringey with £108m cash potThursday 12th April 2012

London Mayor Boris Johnson has unveiled plans to support just 58 new houses in Haringey despite sitting on £108million designated to helping building projects.

The cash pot, which was unveiled in his nine-point plan outlining the future of the city if he is re-elected on May 3, is reserved to help construction projects in London.

The money, if elected, will be used to help unlock stalled building projects in London which have already been granted planning permission.

A total of 2,712 houses in London boroughs of Haringey, Bromley, Wandsworth, Hillingdon, Enfield, Barnet, Hounslow, Hackney, Brent, Lewisham, Southwark and Croydon could be built with the money.

The borough of Lewisham could benefit from 461 new homes if Mr Johnson is re-elected and 405 houses are proposed to boost the housing numbers in Brent.

However, at this stage, the cash will support less than 60 homes being built Haringey.

The proposals, which are yet to be confirmed, include building the properties in Hale Village, which is a site set on the old GLS depot between Tottenham Hale Station and the Lea Valley Navigation.

Hale Village, which is expected to be completed next year, will comprise of 1,200 new homes.

The properties will be a mixture of private homes, shared ownership, student flats and social housing.

The new houses will be built by contractors Hale Village Properties LLP.

Bids for the money were assessed by the Homes and Communities Agency, which was in charge of deciding which projects in London were the most likely to be delivered while offering the best value for money.

The bids for the schemes will continue to be assessed by the agency before the contracts are signed.

The Conservative Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: “This programme offers us a fantastic opportunity to accelerate the delivery of desperately needed new homes and provide a real boost for jobs in the construction industry.

“As well as driving economic growth these sites have all been identified as having the potential to create stronger and thriving communities to live in.”

UN Studios and PLP’s plans for a 30 storey tower on 259 City Road in central London have been approved by Islington Council.

The project – UN Studio’s first in the UK - will include one and two-bedroom apartments, a restaurant, swimming pool, health club, media room and 78 parking spaces.

Ben van Berkel, principal architect, said: “The detailing and contrasting materials on the façade and the balconies of the City Road Tower play a key role in the identity of the building and are, in fact, borrowed from furniture design.

“This is an approach which we more typically apply to designs for smaller private houses. However, following extensive research into the potential for extending durability and maintenance we were able to create unexpected material variations on a larger scale.”

Initial consent for a tower on the site, masterplanned by Bennetts Associates, won planning in 2006.